Spicy Chicken Drumsticks

We often cook all drumsticks or all thighs when we prepare chicken. We love the more flavorful dark meat and the fact that the chicken pieces all get done around the same time. The following recipe is based on one for jerk chicken that my father found in Fine Cooking magazine. Wonderful flavor and the drumsticks cook up quickly.

Ingredients

  • 10 green onions (scallions), white and green parts, chopped
  • 1/2 habanero or Scotch Bonnet chile (or 3 serrano chilies), seeded and chopped
  • 2 Tbsp white wine vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp fresh thyme
  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for additional seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 10 chicken dumsticks (3 1/2 lbs)
  • Olive oil, grapeseed oil, or other high smoke point cooking oil

1 In a food processor, purée the green onions, chilies, vinegar, garlic, thyme, allspice, salt and pepper into a thick paste.

2 Put the drumsticks in a large bowl and coat with the chili paste. Let stand for 10 minutes.

3 Position the oven rack in the center of the oven and set the broiler to high. Coat the bottom of a broiler pan (under the perforated top part of the pan) with oil. (Note that a broiler pan really works best here. A regular baking pan may warp under the high heat of the broiler.) Arrange the drumsticks on the pan and sprinkle generously with salt.

4 Broil chicken, turning once after about 10 minutes. Continue broiling until cooked through (juices run clear when poked with a knife tip) and nicely browned, about 20 minutes total. Note that some pieces may cook faster than others, in which case remove the pieces that are done and continue to cook the rest until cooked through.